Nov. 30 #Options | High & Unusual Volume: Stocks & ETFs

The power of options lies in their versatility as they present a world of opportunity to sophisticated investors (see the 32Trades version of “Options 101“). This versatility, however, does not come without its costs and, despite what anybody tells you, option trading involves risk, especially if you don’t know what you are doing. It’s for this reason why ONLY risk capital should ever be used.

One easy way to get a feel for options, or even bank on them, is to “follow the money.”

The lists below are the highest volume options traded today. When looking into one, visit StockCharts or your trading platform to pull up the chart so you can visualize and track the divergences, PPS spikes, and get a feel for why the volume was so high and if it is one you might want to track.

Top 10 Stock Options Traded

Symbol

Type

Strike

Exp Date

Last

Volume

OI

IV

BAC

Call

21

2/17/2017

1.18

90,782

16,506

28.49%

BAC

Put

19

2/17/2017

0.35

89,730

5,743

30.51%

BAC

Call

21

12/2/2016

0.26

56,130

49,458

44.11%

BAC

Call

20.5

12/2/2016

0.65

45,170

36,841

50.07%

F

Call

12

12/9/2016

0.2

45,124

3,283

30.05%

BAC

Call

19

1/20/2017

2.35

39,059

261,419

32.04%

WLL

Put

8

3/17/2017

0.32

36,166

616

77.63%

HD

Call

140

2/17/2017

1

35,457

1,477

17.87%

BAC

Call

22

1/20/2017

0.48

35,329

246,571

27.30%

BUD

Call

155

1/19/2018

1.85

29,014

15,004

23.51%

Top 10 ETF Options Traded

Symbol

Type

Strike

Exp Date

Last

Volume

OI

IV

XOP

Put

35

12/16/2016

0.05

140,753

116,357

52.92%

XOP

Put

40

12/2/2016

0.12

71,719

1,579

80.70%

SPY

Put

221

12/2/2016

0.94

61,504

21,576

12.58%

EEM

Put

26

1/20/2017

0.03

53,415

64,215

38.45%

SPY

Call

221.5

12/2/2016

0.26

43,316

25,066

14.67%

USO

Put

10

12/9/2016

0.06

42,001

44,698

60.60%

XLF

Put

19

12/2/2016

0.01

40,000

116,632

138.83%

XLB

Put

41

12/16/2016

0.03

40,000

20,646

54.39%

USO

Call

11

1/20/2017

0.61

39,291

69,823

39.73%

EEM

Put

20

3/17/2017

0.04

37,500

37,500

43.93%

USO

Put

10

1/20/2017

0.29

37,234

223,423

43.63%

Unusual Options Activity

Provides insight on what “smart money” is doing with large volume orders. Option volume that exceeds open interest signals new positioning.